veltBuch
songs

Chamber ex Cathedra ii

A fugue in three voices, for analogue synthesizers.

Summary

A fugue for three analogue synthesizer voices — bass polyphonic, distorted strings, warm brass with portamento — in which the score is rendered entirely in ASCII symbols: %%%%% for the first melodic passage, ***## for the second, ++++++_+ for the bridge solo, ----! for the outro. The notation is both a joke and a precise description: the symbols carry the affect (density, sharpness, drag, resolution) without the notes. The lone voice 3 opens; the lone voice fades into reverb at the close.

Lyrics

[a Fugue in three voices, for analogue synthesizers]

[voice 1 - fruity bass polyphonic synthesizer]
[voice 2 - synthesizer set to sound like a distorted stringed instrument]
[voice 3 - synthesizer set to sound like warm brass with portamento]

[intro - lone voice 3]

[verse 1 - voice 1 and voice 3 play entwined melodies]
________%%%%%%%%%%%%$$$$$$$$$$

[verse 2 - voice 2 and voice 3 play entwined melodies]
***##

[bridge - voice 1 solo]
++++++_+

[verse 3 - all voices play entwined melodies]

[outro - lone viola fades into a wall of reverb]
----!

Detail

"Ex cathedra" means "from the chair" — the formal seat of authority from which a bishop speaks with binding doctrinal weight. Applied to chamber music for analogue synthesizers, it is both grandiose and deflating: the machines speak with authority, but the authority is ASCII.

The fugue is the right form for synthesizers because it is fundamentally about voice independence — multiple lines that are each complete, that respond to each other without subordination. Bach's fugues are the canonical example; here the voices are timbral rather than pitched, distinguished by texture (bass polyphonic, distorted strings, warm brass) rather than register.

The ASCII score is the piece's most distinctive feature. %%%%% (dense, repetitive, slightly garish) for the first duet; ***## (sharp, mixed, tailing off) for the second; ++++++_+ (even, with one irregularity) for the bridge solo; ----! (sustained resolution with a final accent) for the outro. This is a notation system that communicates affect rather than pitch — arguably more honest about what analogue synthesis actually does than conventional staff notation would be.

Cross-references